Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were first introduced when the Continental Congress convened in 1775 and labored side by side to draft the Declaration of Independence. United in common cause, they became fast friends. When they ran for president in 1796, resulting in a narrow win for Adams, their friendship cooled. Four years later, when they opposed each other in a second presidential race, things turned ugly. Jefferson won the bitter election, and Adams skipped the inauguration ceremony. They did not speak to each other for twelve years. Our Founding Fathers had become Feuding Founders.
Another founder and signer of the Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Rush (1746-1813) had a dream that these two great Americans would reconcile before each of them “sunk into his grave nearly at the same time full of years and rich in gratitude and praises for their country.” This dream became the impetus for Benjamin to write them, urging “a friendly and epistolary intercourse might be renewed among them.” Adams initiated with a cordial letter to Jefferson, and Jefferson responded in kind. They exchanged one hundred eighty-five letters in their remaining years. They both died on July 4th, in keeping with Benjamin’s dream.
Benjamin believed religion was a necessary function for any successful republic. He also held that forgiveness was central to the gospel. He was the first doctor to treat mental illness as a disease of the brain, rather than the possession of demons. He was an ardent abolitionist, insisting that slavery was a “blight against God.” While his accomplishments are considerable, his biographers also remind us of his feet of clay. He could be headstrong and sure of himself. His wife Julia remarked on his quick tongue against perceived enemies. His hasty criticism of George Washington cost him his job as Surgeon General of the Continental Army. Still, he remains a most remarkable Christian.
Benjamin’s biography, Travels Through Life includes the confession: